Museum Catharijneconvent

Catharijneconvent holds the largest collection of medieval and later Christian art in the Netherlands - manuscripts, panel paintings, sculpture, vestments, silver and church interiors - and its distinguishing decision is that it covers both confessions in one museum: Catholic and Protestant material shown together, in a country where the division shaped everything from politics to school systems and where the two traditions were held separately for centuries. The collection includes work by Geertgen tot Sint Jans, Jan van Scorel, Rembrandt and Frans Hals alongside reliquaries, illuminated books and processional material, and a good deal came from religious houses and parishes rather than the art market. The building is the fifteenth-century convent of St Catherine with its cloister and chapel, later a hospital, and the medieval fabric is part of the visit.

What you actually see

• Both confessions together - Catholic and Protestant material in one collection.
• Medieval manuscripts and panels - Geertgen tot Sint Jans and Van Scorel among them.
• Church silver and vestments - objects from parishes and religious houses.
• A fifteenth-century convent - the cloister and chapel as part of the museum.

When to go

All year. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Closed Mondays. Manuscripts and textiles rotate for conservation. The subject is religious art and the labelling assumes some interest in it. Temporary exhibitions take part of the space.

Nearby

The Dom tower and Utrecht's wharves are a short walk north.